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Get the dish on the secret life of Pete Marczyk in this fine interview by Bill Husted of the Denver Post.

http://www.denverpost.com/entertainmentlastold/ci_14978179

Kenny Be tee!

Here is our new t-shirt art from kenny be. This is the B&W version. Crazy.

Pie throw down

A few weeks ago, Haji our baker was challenged by Liz Thomas, the baker for Watercourse Foods. Challenged to a pie bake off that is.

The place: Sweet Action Ice Cream on Broadway. The pie: Cherry lattice crust. Liz’s was vegan, Haji’s was decidedly not. The judges: 1 from Sweet Action, 1 from Watercourse, 1 from Marczyk’s, and the pie master himself, John Lehndorff.

And the winner was: Haji’s cherry pie a la Marczyk! Both were delicious, but with a full lard crust and just a kiss of almond extract, there was no way Haji was going to lose this one. Great pictures here.

What sets us apart from the rest?

SPECIAL: We have just eight Scandinavian skin-on pork loins. Come pick one up because this is the last of them until Christmas. A  juicy cut of sustainably raised Niman Ranch pork, with a layer of fat, and then the skin covering all, locking in the juices…we’re the only ones who have this cut in Denver!

ON SPECIAL: lamb loin chops, $11.99/lb. Niman Ranch lamb, raised by families throughout the West. Broiled with a light layer of  mint jelly, salt, garlic and rosemary. Or for lord’s sake just put them in the freezer at this price!

Winter won’t let go, so how about some Niman Ranch beef shanks for stew, or beef cheeks? Braised beef cheek tacos here.

Subject: wow

Read it and weep: Gourmet Magazine will be no more.
http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/10/05/conde-nast-to-close-gourmet-magazine/?hp

Time Magazine Gets Real about food

“Niman Ranch raises its livestock traditionally, humanely and sustainably to deliver the finest tasting meat in the world.”
This week’s Time Magazine cover story, Getting Real about the High Price of Cheap Food, is an eye opener about the industry we know and love. We have been plugging Niman Ranch for 7 years, and have been happy to explain over and over what makes them different and why it matters. (To be honest, we have felt like the slightly crazy guy standing on the box on the corner, yelling and waving his arms as people hurry by.) We watched the company grow and go through painful but necessary changes to be what it is today. So it was with great pleasure to see the only meat company mentioned as a viable alternative to commodity pork and beef is, drum roll please, Niman Ranch! (In Time freaking Magazine no less!) Congratulations to them!

Easy Recipes and Big Ass Cookware

Westword Newspaper has added a recipe section to their Cafe Society Blog, and we’re the recipe writers! Join Pete Marczyk and Barbara Macfarlane every week for an easy-to-follow recipe slideshow/video. Bacon candy, corn chowder, fried chicken, and what to do with all that zucchini.

Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, they had to walk into ours.

Phone rang last week in the wine shop. It was the Wall St. Journal calling, they were doing an article on affordable wines, and could Pete suggest a case for around $120? Only three wine shops in the US were called, and we were one. Wow. Here are Pete’s Picks for the WSJ:

1. Château des Chapelains Bordeaux Clairet rosé (France). $9.99.
2. Diego Murillo Torrontés (Argentina). $9.99.
3. Chateau Haut Sarthes Montravel White Bordeaux (France). $9.99.
4. Charles Smith Wines Holy Cow Chardonnay (Washington). $9.99
5. Aveleda Charamba Vino Tinto (Portugal). $9.99.
6. Château Jeanguillon Bordeaux Supérieur (France). $9.99.
7. Belpoggio Rosso Piceno (Italy). $9.99.
8. Famega Vinho Verde (Portugal). $8.99.
9. Gran Sarao Brut Cava (Spain). $12.99.
10. Pierre Olivier Côtes du Rhône Blanc (France). $9.99.
11. Infinite Monkey Theorem Sauvignon Blanc/Sémillon (Colorado). $19.99
12. Parducci Sustainable Red (California). $9.99.

Call 303 894-9499 to get your very own WSJ Pete’s Picks!

March White Wine of the Month

We forgot this beauty in the last email…
Dominio de Eguren Protocolo Blanco 2007. Tierra Castilla, Spain. This is a great looking wine: brilliant yellow with dancing hints of soft green. The pretty nose if rich with aromas of tropical fruit, bananas, green apple and sun ripened peaches and the palate shows soft, silky notes of like fruit, balanced by lively acidity. What a lovely choice for a first day of spring dinner! Regular price: $13.99 - Sale price: $9.99 - Washed Up White case discount price: $8.50.

It’s time to drink with Pete!

March Wine Specials

Niman to change name to Bank of America

Niman Ranch is in trouble (nothing they haven’t seen before) and the state of affairs is sad. http://www.gourmet.com/foodpolitics/2009/01/politics-of-the-plate-niman-ranch-crisis

When B of A gets 35 BILLION dollars from TARP, of which 4 B was handed out to Merrill Execs as bonuses and another 550mm in dividends to MER common shareholders, and a company like Niman can’t get a loan, the state of affairs is sad.

Interesting conversations around here at Marczyk’s as we discuss our plans for the coming year and beyond; we talk about sustainability in agriculture, and indeed sustainability of our business model. Eating right does cost more, but in fairness, it represents the true, sustainable cost of eating. In this country we see it as a luxury to eat the way we promote eating. As you know, in Europe no hormones are allowed in beef production…no wonder that beef is more expensive and eaten much less often and in smaller quantities…no wonder that heart disease and obesity are much less prevalent too.
3 years ago we were interviewed about the business by a local business writer. We said then “Our nation would be better served when we care which veggies the Jones’ were growing, instead of what they were driving. That would be something worth keeping up with!” Culturally, it’s more important what brand of car we drive than with the provenance of what we put in our bodies; that’s fucked up. And we’ll continue to be fucked up as long as every Tom, Dick and Harry claims ALL NATURAL!!! Look around, proclamations like this: “Our fresh and aged meats are all-natural and free of additives. We prove it with independent chemical testing…” are everywhere, assaulting our reality. All Natural, as defined by USDA, is a meaningless set of guidelines and only refers to the product after slaughter. It isn’t all natural the way we think of all natural. It’s a happy-horse-shit idea of all natural. All natural allows for the use of hormones and antibiotics in the production of beef and the use of growth-promoting antibiotics in pork and chicken. There is a huge difference in meat which has been raised with antibiotics in terms of water retention, flavor and texture.
As a nation we really believe that .99 pork is OK. It’s not. It’s wrong. It is bad for the farmers, it’s bad for the consumers, it’s bad for the environment, and it’s bad for the animals. Not sometimes—always. Try to buy non-commodity (ie non-CAFO) pork at one of the big markets or even at your favorite white-tablecloth restaurant—BTW, White Marble Farms ain’t it. We owe it to ourselves, our children and our environment to do the right thing.
Let’s all riot for reality: We want truth in advertising! We want a national solution to bringing affordable, sustainably raised meat to the table, not just our table, but the world’s! We want companies like Niman, who are trying to do the right thing, encouraged to grow, not cut off at the knees. We’ve said it before, we’ll say it again: vote for change with your wallet!